"All set?" Lupin asked loudly, and when Harry and Malfoy both nodded, he released a Red Cap from its cage.
Ivan also disarmed his Petrifaction Charm at the same time, restoring the other Redcap to full mobility.
The Red Caps, having been cast with the Confunding Charm, lost all sense of their surroundings, and were unable to see the wizards surrounding them.
Harry and Malfoy had previously witnessed Ivan's ease of spell-casting, but now that they were facing him in person, they realised that the creature was not to be trifled with.
Although the Red Cap was not very tall and could only hit them on the shoulder when he jumped, the wild, seemingly fearless look on his face frightened the two of them.
"Stupefy!" Harry nervously followed Ivan's example and cast the spell.
A magical beam of light shot out, but it missed and hit the wall behind the Red Cap.
It was not easy for Harry to hit a fast-moving target due to his lack of combat experience, not to mention the fact that the Red Caps were small and quite a distance away.
"Harry! Don't panic, keep your distance… don't use your magic until the Red Cap is closer! Yes, that's right… now, steady… cast!" Ivan was advising Harry on how to find the right moment.
Harry made a mental note to keep his nerves in check and calmly waited for the Red Cap to approach before he cast the Stunning Spell again.
A brilliant red light shone from the tip of the wand. This time, it hit its target. The running Red Cap stumbled and fell to the ground.
Malfoy, on the other hand, was flustered.
Despite Lupin's advice on how to cast the spell to banish the Red Cap, Malfoy, who already had a problem with Lupin, was not prepared to deal with it the way Lupin wanted him to.
He cast a dark spell of unknown origin, which, coupled with a bit of luck, hit the red hat in the chest.
Malfoy, however, apparently overestimated his own magical abilities. Instead of being knocked off his feet, the cursed Red Cap charged at Malfoy in a fit of rage.
Malfoy panicked and cast two spells, one of which missed and the other blew off the Red Cap's right arm.
However, the Red Cap, who had lost an arm, charged at Malfoy, his face contorted and his mouth full of tears.
"Help me… help me…"
"Petrify them all!" As Lupin's gentle voice rang out, a burst of light hit the Red Cap, and he was frozen in an attacking position in front of Malfoy.
The Red Cap's right arm was dripping blood, and the claw on his left arm was only a dozen centimeters away from reaching Malfoy's arm.
Malfoy, still in shock, turned red and then white. He looked at Lupin angrily, thinking that Lupin must have wanted to see him make a fool of himself, so he waited until the last moment to save him.
Lupin did not care much for Malfoy's attitude, pointing out the mistakes Malfoy made during the fight and encouraging him to try again.
Malfoy impatiently returned to his original position, but this time he didn't try to fool around and followed Lupin's instructions to cast the spell.
Malfoy felt a sense of accomplishment when he saw the "strong enemy" Red Cap running around in a panic after losing his target and crashing into the wall.
Malfoy felt awkward when he remembered that he had been taught by Lupin.
After Harry and Malfoy defeated the Red Caps, more and more wizards volunteered to try.
Unlike fighting a fearsome creature like the Boggart, the red hat was fierce-looking, but it was actually a magical beast that could cause harm!
This thrill was very novel to these young wizards who had never experienced a life-and-death battle. Some young wizards even mistakenly thought that this was a real battle, and after winning, they proudly bragged that they were very calm and unafraid of battle!
However, about one-third of these wizards were in trouble during their first encounter with the Red Cap.
When it was Seamus's turn, he was so anxious that he cast a spell on Neville, who was standing nearby. If Ivan hadn't reacted in time and cast an Armor Charm on poor Neville, he would have been hit…
Fortunately, by the time the class was about to end, all of the young wizards had mastered the techniques to deal with the red hats, and they were no longer as flustered as before.
As a result of this, most of the young wizards felt much stronger after this Defence Against the Dark Arts class, and were full of praise for Lupin.
"Professor Lupin's class was brilliant! Last time it was Boggart, this time it was Red Hat. I wonder what's next?"
"He's the best Defence Against the Dark Arts professor I've ever seen!"
…
The young wizards were all talking at once, and Lupin naturally heard them. He smiled faintly and sighed.
These months at Hogwarts were arguably his most relaxed and happiest in years.
There was no discrimination, a good meal and a handsome salary.
It was not even a task for him to teach, as it was a joy to be able to interact with these mischievous and interesting students, and he hoped that his identity would never be discovered.
After returning to his office from the classroom, Lupin took out the Wolfsbane Potion from his wizard robes and prepared to drink it.
Calculating the time, the full moon should be in the next few days. It would be better to drink it early to be safe…
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
Lupin immediately stopped what he was doing and placed the Wolf Venom Potion in his drawer in a panic.
"Come on in!"
"Hello, Professor Lupin!" Ivan opened the door and entered, closing it behind him with a nod.
After thinking about it for a while, Ivan decided that it might not be safe, so he locked the door from the inside so that no one could eavesdrop on their conversation.
Lupin took in Ivan's actions of locking the door and a chill went down his spine. He felt that he… might not survive the day…